Dealing with IHG Into the Nights Fiasco

A week ago my IHG Into the Nights offer for two free nights changed from five tasks requiring only three nights to complete and earn two free nights with IHG in 2015 to six tasks requiring either a minimum seven nights or IHG stays in two countries outside the USA.

IHG came out with a statement last week that some members received the incorrect offer upon original registration in September and some members, like me, saw their tasks change last week, some six weeks into the four month promotion. IHG states the new offers are the correct offers. Some members report on FlyerTalk their offers reverted back to the older tasks assigned at registration.

My tasks completely changed last week from the original offer I received when I registered September 5, 2014. I mentioned on my blog My IHG Rewards Club Into the Nights offer (Sep 5, 2014) that I had difficulty all day when trying to register for IHG Rewards Club Into the Nights promotion on the previous day. My offer looked easily achievable to me with three hotel nights including two Holiday Inn Saturday night stays.

IHG has not reverted my offer back to the original offer I received upon registration in early September.

I find myself in a state of confusion dealing with IHG Into the Nights fiasco, since I already booked two Holiday Inn hotel Saturday night stays to meet the terms of the original five tasks for two free nights. My first hotel stay reservation is two weeks away.

Original tasks presented for my account when I enrolled in IHG Into the Nights promotion on September 5, 2014.

I downloaded the IHG app and booked a Holiday Inn stay for a Saturday night. I booked a second Holiday Inn stay for Saturday night. I had a third stay at another Holiday Inn IHG booked for two nights. Three stays with four nights would have completed all five of these tasks.

But now, as of a week ago, I have a completely different set of offers to complete IHG Into the Nights.

IHG Into the Nights offer had six new and completely different tasks linked to my account last week. The different tasks required a minimum of 7 nights or 10 stays booked via the app. I needed to complete 5 of 6 tasks to earn 2 free nights which meant my previous offer requiring a minimum of three nights to complete was increased to a minimum 7 nights to complete. At this point I was ready to quit the promotion chase like many other IHG Rewards Club members have done.

Then, the offer changed again in the past couple of days for the IHG mobile app booking from 10 stays to one stay booked via the mobile app.

Looks like I will cancel all my IHG hotel reservations and start over again with my current offer for completion of five tasks to earn two free nights.

This set of tasks can actually be completed in two hotel nights as long as I globetrot to two different countries for IHG stays. Lucky for me I have a November trip planned to Dublin and London. The last time IHG did this kind of multi-task promotion, I had a task requiring hotel stays in Europe when I had no plans to be in Europe.

Why Not Just Walk Away from IHG Rewards Club?

This IHG Into the Nights promotion is the biggest screw-up I have seen in my years of analyzing hotel loyalty promotions. I would simply walk away from this IHG Into the Nights offer if I did not have a trip to Europe planned next month allowing me to complete my current tasks with only two paid hotel nights.

Since I only need to complete five of six tasks, I can skip the 7 nights at IHG hotels task and stay in Dublin and London for one night each with one stay booked for a breakfast rate and one stay booked using the IHG app. Completing the IHG survey and applying for the IHG credit card do not require a hotel booking. I can complete all five tasks with two paid hotel nights.

My wife Kelley still has her original offer which is the same five tasks shown in the first IHG Into the Nights image of this post requiring 3 nights, 2 Holiday Inn Stays and 2 Saturday nights with an IHG app booking.

We are looking at earning 4 free nights after 5 paid nights over the next two months. I evaluate this IHG Into the Nights offer as $500 spent in 2014 for $1,000+ value with 4 free nights in Europe at IHG hotels in July 2015.

In the next post I will analyze breakfast rates at IHG hotels.

*****

Ric Garrido of Monterey, California is writer and owner of Loyalty Traveler.

Loyalty Traveler shares news and views on hotels, hotel loyalty programs and vacation destinations for frequent guests. Check out current hotel loyalty program offers across all the major chains in Loyalty Traveler’s monthly hotel promotions guide.

Ric Garrido of Monterey, California started Loyalty Traveler in 2006 for traveler education on hotel and air travel, primarily using frequent flyer and frequent guest loyalty programs for bargain travel.
Loyalty Traveler joined BoardingArea.com in 2008.

Pingbacks

[…] Dealing with IHG Into the Nights Fiasco – Loyalty Traveler When Ric says “This IHG Into the Nights promotion is the biggest screw-up I have seen in my years of analyzing hotel loyalty promotions” you know something is not right over at IHG. I am staying the hell away! You were warned! […]

[…] IHG, despite its Into the Nights fiasco, offers me what I estimate to be a $100 credit on the cost of a hotel room. I see a $120 room at an IHG hotel and I calculate the actual long-term cost will be $20 per night since I will get $300 hotel value from the two free nights I earn after three paid hotel nights at IHG hotels. That is the best rebate value I can get and makes IHG my first choice hotels for travel. Loyalty Traveler – Dealing with IHG Into the Nights Fiasco. […]

Comments

What a fiasco! Just after completing my first offer (two stays for a free night, my second, identical offer was changed to stay at three brands for a free night. Good thing I didn’t bother canceling a cheaper reservation at a Marriott.

My offer was ridiculous from the start. I have two international stays required and many nights in hotels. Due to a situation not unlike your wife’s earlier one, we have no travel plans at the moment. Even if we had, the promotion just wouldn’t have been worth it this time. Mine was not changed from the original offer, by the way.

I was lucky. I completed my tasks in three nights with $400 spend. Turned around and used the two nights immediately, booking Hotel Indigo Edinburgh for the height of festival season ($1400 value). It sounds like a lot of people are having a tough time of it though.

My tasks, they never changed, however my problem has been practically no updating, and having to email IHG to get my start date for the promotion correct in the first place.

That’s also been the only stay that’s posted to the IntoTheNights dashboard. I have had two revenue stays since then (9/28, 10/12); neither of these have posted at all.

It has been extremely poor to say the least. I had a one-night stay at Hyatt recently, and both the bonus points for mobile booking, and my targeted offer already posted properly, a couple of days after the stay.

For me he last Big Win wasn’t worth finishing and Into The Nights offer wasn’t even worth registering for. Now that I consider my relationship with IHG pretty much over all the latest screw-ups has just been corporate entertainment.

They never even sent me all the Reels promotion movie tickets and drink/popcorns I was due. I have no trust in IHG at all.

One of my items was one stay booked via mobile app. I did it and they changed it to two bookings before it credited. I emailed and they said they would not revert. Really frustrating bc I had two stays and would have booked both via mobile app if I had known.

I thought IHG had put out a statement saying that those people who had registered and started working towards completing the promo under the old offers could stick to it and they would honor that; only new registrants would need to complete the offers under the new promo terms.
This would mean that you don’t have to go and adjust your planned stays.

I booked all my stays using IHG App for ITN. I have to make 2 reservations using the app. The stays posted correctly on the ITN dashboard except the task with using the app. Does anybody have the same problem? How can it be resolved? I contacted IHG already but no answer. Thanks.